Phil Megicks

Service quality in postgraduate education

Purpose – Measuring service quality in higher education is increasingly important for attracting and retaining tuition‐based revenues. Nonetheless, whilst undergraduates have received substantial academic exposure, postgraduate‐based research has been scant. Consequently, the objectives of this paper are threefold: first, to identify the service factors used by postgraduates in their quality evaluations. Second, to analyse the appropriateness of importance‐performance analysis (IPA) in the measurement of service quality and, final, to provide a working example of IPAs application in a UK‐based university.Design/methodology/approach – Convergent interviews were used to elicit attributes of service that were deemed important by taught postgraduate students. These findings were then tested using an online survey. Exploratory factor analysis was used to group the service attributes into latent “service factors”. Each service factor was then tested for service quality using Martilla and Jamess IPA technique....

Understanding local food shopping: unpacking the ethical dimension

Abstract Analysing shopping in the local food sector is an area of contemporary consumer research that has received considerable interest in recent times. The significance of the topic relates not only to underlying consumer behaviour theory, but also to the perceived role of local food in environmentally responsible purchasing practices, and consequently sustainable food policies. However, previous empirical investigation of local food buying behaviour is limited, and this research extends current work through adopting a mixed methods approach that comprised qualitative focus groups with an online survey of consumers. Multivariate analysis techniques were utilised to identify a set of drivers of and inhibitors to local food buying. Following this, two types of local food buyers were distinguished based upon the reasons for buying/not buying, and these were further categorised using demographic and location variables. An integrated modelling process was then used to establish the effects of the different influences on behavioural intentions and actual buying behaviour. Results identified a complex range of outcomes which indicate that the ethical sustainability dimension of local food shopping does not positively affect consumer buying in this market. The implications for related areas of theory and the future marketing practices of local food suppliers and retailers are then considered.

A decision-focused knowledge management framework to support collaborative decision making for lean supply chain management

Lean supply chain management is a relatively new concept resulting from the integration of lean philosophy into supply chain management. Decision making in a lean supply chain context is challenging because of the complexity, dynamics, and uncertainty inherent to both supply networks and the types of waste (defined as any processes, including use of resources, which do not add value to customers). Efficient knowledge management has been identified as one of the key requirements to achieve integrated support for lean supply chain decisions. This paper proposes a decision-focused knowledge framework including a multi-layer knowledge model (to capture the know-why and know-with together with the know-what and know-how), a knowledge matrix for knowledge elicitation, and a decision tree for the design of the knowledge base. A knowledge system for lean supply chain management (KSLSCM) has been developed using artificial intelligence system shells VisiRule and Flex. The KSLSCM has five core components: a supply chain decision network manager, a waste elimination knowledge base, a knowledge refinement module, an inference engine, and a decision justifier. The knowledge framework and the KSLSCM have been evaluated through an industrial decision case. It has been demonstrated through the KSLSCM that the decision-focused knowledge framework can provide efficient and effective support for collaborative decision making in supply chain waste elimination.

Perceived Benefits and E-Commerce Adoption by SME Travel Agents in Developing Countries Evidence from Egypt

Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), particularly in developing countries, are regarded as slow adopters of technology, especially e-commerce. Travel agents are a typical category of SMEs, experiencing changes in the travel market structure, caused by the use of e-commerce. E-Commerce adoption is a means of supporting agents’ future survival and competitiveness at a time when many are facing the threat of disintermediation from the global travel market. The investigation of e-commerce adoption by SMEs in developing countries represents an emerging area of research, with only a limited number of studies undertaken to date. This research aims to examine the perceived benefits of an advanced level e-commerce adoption by Egyptian travel agents. Structural equation modeling is used to categorize a set of perceived benefit factors for e-commerce adoption, and establish a relationship with the level of adoption. Results indicate that marketing and competition benefits, essential benefits that support strategy and development, and business efficiency benefits all positively contribute to decisions that lead to an advanced level of e-commerce being adopted.

Levels of strategy and performance in UK small retail businesses

Purpose – This study aims to investigate the way in which small retailer performance is influenced by strategy at different levels. It also aims to propose that business level strategy is more important to success than functional level strategy in small retail firms, as this is what enables them to distinguish their business from competitors and effectively set about competing in their markets.Design/methodology/approach – Data were collected from a mail survey of 305 independent retailers in the UK. Multivariate statistical methods were used to develop appropriate variables and explore the relationships between level of strategy and performance.Findings – The results indicate that business level strategy variables have a significant influence on performance whereas functional levels do not when their combined effects are analysed using hierarchical regression modelling.Research limitations/implications – The caveats normally associated with survey methods apply, as do those related to the use of cross‐se...

A knowledge chain management framework to support integrated decisions in global supply chains

Knowledge management has been identified as a key enabler to achieve organisation’s value chain competitiveness. It, however, has been facing fresh challenges in a global supply chain setting. This paper proposes a global knowledge chain management (GKCM) framework that identifies and prioritises critical knowledge that a global supply chain can focus on to support integrated decisions. The framework explores three types of global context knowledge, namely global market knowledge, global capacity knowledge and global supply network configuration knowledge. Empirical study has been undertaken within the manufacturing industry to evaluate the GKCM framework. Analytic network process has been explored as a key method to assess the importance of the global knowledge constructs from supply chain managers’ perspectives. A key contribution of the paper is that it advances existing knowledge chain management approaches within one organisation and its local supply chain to include the global context knowledge applicable to global manufacturing settings, and highlights how the GKCM framework can support global supply chain integrated decisions.

Unpicking motives to purchase locally-produced food: analysis of direct and moderation effects

Purpose This study investigates how attributes associated with local food (intrinsic product quality; local support) motivate purchase behaviour. Previous research assumes heterogeneity in consumer motivation, but this has never been formally assessed. As such, the influence of local food attributes in motivating product use is integrated into a model in which consumer values and personal characteristics/situational variables are specified as moderators. Design/methodology/approach Eight hypotheses are tested using data collected from a quota sample of respondents recruited via an online panel of 1223 shoppers. A three-stage analysis is employed using structural equation modelling (SEM). Moderation effects are tested using both latent interactions and multiple-group analysis. Findings Shoppers purchase local food more frequently as a consequence of local support rather than intrinsic product quality. Unpicking these relationships reveal that local support has an amplified effect when local identity is higher, and when the shopper is female or of an older age (55yrs+). Surprisingly, the influence of intrinsic product quality is equivalent by gender, age and location (rural/urban). Practical implications Marketers promoting locally produced foods should focus on both the intrinsic attributes of local food as well as the role it plays within the local community. The latter is more likely to be successful with communications aimed at women and older consumers. Originality/value With previous studies focusing on how local food attributes influence favourable consumer behaviours, the current study unpicks these relationships by examining heterogeneity in responses. This is the first study to concurrently use attributes, values and personal characteristics/situational variables in explaining shopping behaviour for local food.

Bullying and harassment and work-related stressors: Evidence from British small and medium enterprises

This article examines the relationship between work-related stressors and bullying and harassment in British small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs). Using representative data from a national survey on employment rights and experiences (Fair Treatment at Work), this research identifies that bullying and harassment are just as prevalent in British SMEs as in larger organisations. Drawing upon the Management Standards of the Health and Safety Executive, a number of significant relationships with bullying and harassment are established. Work demands placed upon employees are positively related to bullying and harassment behaviours, while autonomy, manager support, peer support and clarity of role are negatively associated with such behaviours. The study considers implications for human resource practices in SMEs, and the risks of informal attitudes to these work-related stressors in contemporary workplaces are discussed.

The exploitation of market knowledge within relationship orientated small accountancy practices

Within the academic literature there is general acceptance that customer knowledge competence can have a critical influence over whether a firm can successfully achieve a market advantage over competition. There is, however, only limited empirical evidence to support this perspective. This study utilises a previously developed customer knowledge survey tool to compare knowledge management practices within small relationship orientated accountancy practices and small, transactionally orientated firms. The survey was undertaken across a sample of small UK accountancy practices. Results suggest that compared to their transactional counterparts, small relationship orientated firms perceive that customer knowledge is an important aspect of the marketing process. Small, relationship orientated practices also appear to recognise the importance of operating a structured knowledge management system within their organisations.

Good environmental practices in a traditional wine producer: an opportunity for global competition

In an environment characterised by a global, dynamic and increasingly more competitive economy, wine businesses must identify advantages which enable them to achieve higher profits than their competitors. As such, the integration of an environmental variable in business strategy is being promoted as a potential source of competitive advantages. This investigation analyses, from a multidisciplinary point of view, the potential effects of good environmental practices on strategic behaviours in the wine industry, as well as their ecological and economic results. A cooperative group in this industry provides the study context; the authors investigate how it confronts threats from its environment. The results show that managerial commitment has been the main promoter of good environmental practices, mostly those that are easy to apply, demand low economic costs, and allow for improvements in the productivity and quality of the products. This study also offers a series of implications to contribute to existing knowledge about success factors for environmental strategies, especially in the wine industry.